When flying from Heathrow I’m usually with BA (T5 & T3) and occasionally Virgin (T3), so it’s been years since I visited Terminal 2. Finally I’m travelling to Athens with Aegean so I’m finding myself at T2 again, a chance to re-sample the Star Alliance lounges.
Terminal 2 has two wings / departure halls: A and B. Here’s a quick overview of the lounge situation:
- Lufthansa’s business lounge and Senator lounge are in T2A, the main departure area
- Also in T2A are Plaza Premium lounge (which you can access using Amex Platinum / Priority Pass / Dragonpass) and Aer Lingus Lounge
- The other Star Alliance lounges – United, Air Canada and Singapore – are all in T2B
I’ve been to all four Star Alliance lounges. Back when Virgin had the crazy redemption deal with Air China I booked myself on CA’s First Class and had a fun lounge crawl at T2, including the first lounges of United and Singapore.
T2 has a security fast track for Star Gold and business-class passengers, although it’s rather quiet today.
Here comes the painful part. Lufthansa’s lounge is temporarily closed so everyone has to visit T2B. It takes about 15 minutes to walk between T2A and T2B and there’s no shuttle train available like in T5. There are travelators going from A to B which mitigates the pain a little bit, but no recourse going the other direction. If I remember correctly, most short haul flights depart from T2A, including my flight to Athens.
After a long trek I’m finally at T2B, turning right to check out the United lounge first. United used to have a First lounge but as they’ve cancelled the product it has been repurposed to a Global Services lounge, which is reserved for United’s most exclusive Global Services and Premier 1K members.
Other passengers are directed to the United Club. United lounges has this two-tier system where critical locations install the premium Polaris Lounge whereas the rest receive the inferior United Club.
London definitely deserves a Polaris Lounge. Although it’s somehow not the case, its United Club is well above the usual standard.
Most US-bound flights leave in the morning or around midday, so I was hoping for a quieter lounge at 3pm. Obviously it’s not the case!
It is a huge lounge with the, allegedly, longest bar at Heathrow:
Strange they don’t have a drinks menu. Phone booths and shower rooms:
No a-la-carte dining is offered here, which I assume is the main reason it can’t be called a Polaris Lounge. Buffet tables are in a kitchen room:
Available hot dishes are:
- Mushroom spinach spaghetti
- Rosemary maple baked root vegetables
- Roasted mint new potatoes
- Vegetable masala
- Cottage pie
- Pot roasted chicken thigh
- Sweet potato coconut and chilli soup
- Rice
I had a bite of the chicken thighs which are very well seasoned.
The Singapore and Air Canada lounges are at the other side of the departure hall, opposite to each other. Let’s visit Singapore first.
On the right-hand side there’s a small and cosy space which is likely the only unbusy part of the lounge.
The main body of the lounge is on the other side.
Size-wise it is not comparable to the United Club, but not small by any means. It is also very compactly designed, which feels crammed but looking on the bright side you’ll always find a seat.
Semi-private pods:
There’s also a bar, although not as impressive as that of United’s.
Here comes my most eagerly awaited part of the lounge: food! I still remember the nice laksa they served in the first lounge years ago.
Hot dishes are:
- Chicken egg drop
- Roasted pumpkin and coconut
- Steamed rice
- Potato and cauliflower curry
- Colcannon
- Tom yum rice vermicelli with vegetables
- Baked pork meatballs
Honestly it is pretty much a let-down. I’m usually a big fan of Southeast Asian cuisine but what they serve here is a bit “unorthodox”. I heard other people have much better experiences though, so maybe I was just unlucky.
Bonus point: ice cream!
And finally let’s finish with the Air Canada lounge.
Compared to the other two lounges, Air Canada’s is a peaceful haven with very few guests. When you are presented with the two options, I guess most people will naturally lean towards Singapore given their better reputation.
But out of the three lounges, Air Canada wins me over by a long shot on the subject of interior design. The floor plan, colour matching and lighting are all very thoughtful, and again it is very tranquil.
Apologies that I forgot to take any photo of their food, but it was a simple spread. Interestingly many East Asian travellers know the Air Canada lounge for a very niche reason: they serve Moutai here, an expensive Chinese liquor.
Unlike T3 where I usually head straight to the Cathay lounge, the three Star Alliance lounges at T2 each has their own advantages, but I wouldn’t call any of them outstanding. If you are departing from T2A and has access to the Plaza Premium lounge, I suggest you remain there instead unless you are doing a step count challenge!
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